Water Water Everywhere

It's raining! And we're stuck inside, so it seemed like a good time to write a post about water, irrigation to be precise. Spring is the time for setting up irrigation for the rest of the season, and we've been doing our best to get all our hoses in a line so none of the new seedlings go thirsty.

There are a lot of different options when it comes to watering systems, but we mostly use drip tape irrigation on the farm. Drip tape is just that: tape (more like a really flat hose) that drips. It has little holes punched in it at intervals that let the water out. Drip tape is great because it provides a slow, steady source of water to the roots of the plants. It uses water a lot more efficiently than overhead sprinklers, since you're not losing much water to evaporation, and it is more targeted---so you don't end up watering all those dandelions that are right next to your tomatoes.

One of Tyler's goals this season is to learn more about irrigation, so he's been our main go-to man when it comes to setting up and fixing the irrigation. In the photo below he is attaching drip tape to one of the header hoses (a sturdy hose that brings the water to the target field). That red knob is a little valve that can be turned on and off to start or stop the flow of water to that particular bed of vegetables.

You might be wondering what all that plastic on the ground is about. The plastic serves several purposes: First, since it's black, it traps heat in the ground and since it's impermeable, it also prevents evaporation of the water coming from the drip tape underneath it. Second, it acts as a mulch and keeps weeds out. We lay it out at the same time as the drip tape, and it's especially good for vegetables that like their homes to be hot and steamy, i.e. tomatoes, peppers, squash, and cucumbers. In fact, the tomatoes that we planted yesterday went in fields with this plastic-drip tape set up!And to finish us off--here's Tyler lounging on the irrigation hosing--This stuff just has so many uses!

Here Come the Tomatoes

Today is another beautiful and HOT day! Yesterday it was well into the 90's and today is pushing 90 as well. We got a lot done this morning though: we planted tomatoes, watered the pick your own flowers, and hooped and covered the tomatoes with fabric. Hopefully the fabric will serve to scare off any animals that would like to turn those tomatoes into a snack. We have quite the groundhog population on the farm this year, so we're trying to keep those baby plants from becoming baby groundhog food.

Yesterday we went to Butler's Orchard, a neighboring Pick-Your-Own Farm, to glean spinach from their fields. We were able to send our growers home with 2 pounds of spinach each; we sent 40 pounds to the food bank, and 30 to group homes for adults with developmental disabilities. That comes out to 100 pounds total! If you've never been to Butler's Orchard, they're a very popular spot to pick all sorts of fruits, flowers and vegetables. We'll be there in a month or so to start picking strawberries, and yesterday we could see the strawberry plants were already starting to flower!

It's a-buzz around here

Today, as I zipped by the beehives on the golf cart I noticed that the bees were very active--in fact, the most activity I've seen yet this year. And like the bees, we here (the people) are very busy. The rain put a little hitch in our stride the past couple of days, but we took the opportunity today to multitask. Filling pots in anticipation of the 1,080 plants to arrive tomorrow afternoon (peppers & tomatoes) after I pick them up in Delaware; weeding the garlic; mowing the aisles, cleaning pots; and prepping the truck for the journey.

Nonetheless, one of the most exciting developments that I happened upon today is the below picture. The asparagus has poked itself out of the ground! We don't have enough to give it to our CSA plus it's a little early, we've got a month to go, but there's enough around to share with our workforce.

Tending To Tomorrow's Tinctures (and Appetizers!)

Today we took a big step towards summer's tomato and garlic salads--by weeding the garlic and planting tomatoes. Last season we had saved seeds from some of our heirloom tomato varieties, and today we planted eleven flats of tomatoes, using a good bit of those Red Wiggler seeds. The great thing about keeping seeds from your own crop is that you're naturally selecting for plants that thrive in the unique micro climate of your farm--or backyard. We're excited to see how these fellows turn out. Among the varieties we planted are Purple Cherokees, Green Zebras, Great Whites, Valencias, and (a new comer!) Red Pear Periform.

Above, the garlic fields getting some attention. Here's one of the growers showing a thistle he just weeded out. If we could only grow mozzarella, we'd really have the makings for a great salad!

The Pick Your Own also took some steps towards blooming today. As you can see, we put our signs back up, and we planted quite a few flowers (though you can't see those yet). We're trying some new ones out this year, including Evening Primrose, and a beneficial insect attractant mix. The Evening Primrose is planted right in front of the Echinacea and is a medicinal herb whose seeds contain high levels of different omega fatty acids.

The first bed of the Pick Your Own is really shaping up into quite the medicinal herb/tea bed. We start off with the Evening Primrose, followed by Echinacea, then Bee Balm, and then finally Roman Chamomile. Chamomile, is of course, used in making chamomile tea, which is done by harvesting the flowers and then steeping them in boiling water. Bee Balm, or Wild Bergamot, can also be made into tea by harvesting the flowers and leaves and similarly steeping them fresh or dried for an Earl Grey-esque tea. Echinacea, or purple cone flower, is also thought to have medicinal properties, mostly as a weapon against the common cold. Looks like if things go well this season, we'll be knee deep in teas and tinctures by summer!

The Potatoes Have Left the Building

On Thursday we successfully planted our 250 pounds of potatoes! The wind died down and we were able to get them all into the ground. We ended up planting three rows under the landscape fabric and about five rows in regular hills.
Come July we're looking forward to harvesting several different varieties: German Butterballs, Red Norlands, All Blues, Yukon Golds, and Kennebecs are all on the menu. Planting potatoes with the growers was a great activity. Since the potato peices are sturdy and easy to handle everyone could pitch in and we were quick to get them nicely planted. Here we are, in the photo above, raking hills up around the potatoes that just went in.

Two of the growers took some excellent photos yesterday, including this nice one of Adrienne on the tractor, above, and Michelle and one of growers checking out a German Butterball that's about to be planted, below.


And no, that's not rocket woman! It's just Adrienne using the handy flame weeder to burn holes in the landscape fabric so we can plant through it. (It does look like she's about to take off though!)

In other news, the Kohlrabi also made it into the field, as we transplanted the seedlings we'd hardened off in the barn earlier.

Seeking Summer Interns

In the interest of sharing what we know and hopefully attracting more wonderful people to the farm, we are launching a Summer Farm Internship with two openings.

The position description follows, and if you know anyone who might be interested, please pass this along or direct them to the idealist.org website, where the listing is also posted. We are flexible, so please approach us with any interest!

Interns will have the opportunity to participate in most aspects of running a small, organic, not-for-profit farm, and to learn skills for working with adults with developmental disabilities. With the assistance of other staff and Growers (adult employees with developmental disabilities) interns will take part in planting, harvesting, composting, managing weeds and pests, and staffing the CSA pick up.

Training on the following topics will be provided in the form of readings and on the job learning: crop life cycles and management, pest identification and management, weed identification and management, soil nutrient management, sustainable agricultural practices, and CSA structure and operation. In addition, interns are encouraged to participate in educational and social activities on the farm, including the annual farm tour, the end of season silent auction and supper, solar house events and educational offerings on Saturday CSA pick-ups. Interns will accompany staff, when appropriate, on excursions to other farms and be introduced to local businesses and producers.

Skills Required
The ability to work patiently and positively with adults with developmental disabilities is a must. No farming or gardening experience necessary, but a willingness to work outdoors in all types of weather, get dirty, and keep a positive attitude are essential. Good social skills and a readiness to work with volunteer groups, CSA customers, and farm visitors a must.

The Red Wiggler Summer Internship begins June 29th and ends August 21st. Interns will work 20 hours over the course of Tuesday through Saturday. This is an unpaid internship.

Please contact Liz Phelan with a letter of interest at Volunteer@RedWiggler.org. Applications will be considered and offers will be made on a rolling basis. Last day to apply is June 10th 2009.

Call for Potato Recipes

When I'm planting seeds in the spring I like to think about how delicious those plants will be to eat in the summer. In honor of the potatoes that we're planting tomorrow, I'm looking for some inspiration for some scrumptious potato dishes to put in our CSA newsletter come harvest time. If you have any favorites, please post them to the blog! We'll try to put some staff favorites up this week too, so you can start trying them out now.
To get us started, here's a recipe for Scalloped Potatoes from Elise of the Simply Recipes blog. I have to say, this looks pretty darn good!

http://elise.com/recipes/archives/004174scalloped_potatoes.php

Potatoes in the Snow

Today our big goal was to plant the 250 pounds of potatoes that we have in the barn. The weather turned out to have other plans for us, but we did manage to take a step in the right direction. This morning we used the tractor to create some small hills, and used some serious man power to lay landscape fabric down over three rows of those hills.

This year we're trying a new method for our potatoes. Instead of "hilling," which is the more traditional way of cultivating potatoes, we're planting them under landscape fabric on some tiny hills that we won't maintain as the season goes on. "Hilling" normally entails creating a small hill of dirt around the potato plant's stem as it grows to cover the tubers, improve drainage, and to give the potatoes soft dirt that they can grow through easily to become big and beautiful. The hope is that the landscape fabric will accomplish some of those same functions as the hilling, namely shielding the potatoes from the sun so they don't turn green and become inedible, and giving them plenty of space under the surface of the fabric to grow easily--all without us having to dig up the potatoes at the end of the season!

Our plan was to lay down the fabric and then burn a small hole that we could plant through every 12 inches. However, today turned out to be very windy--not to mention snowy! We thought at a few points that we might all sail away rolling out this 300 ft-long sheet of fabric, but though we managed to get it down, the wind kept putting out our flame for making the holes. So it looks like we'll be planting them tomorrow. Keep your fingers crossed that it's not too windy and that it doesn't freeze tonight. We tucked the potatoes in in the barn, so hopefully they'll be a-ok for their big day.

Here's a photo of one of the four varieties of potatoes that we're planting this year. We've chopped the potatoes up into halves and thirds before planting.


And here are some of our staff and growers with the trailer full of potatoes. Look at those clouds in the distance! There's our snow!


Here are the beds after we finished putting down the landscape fabric. You can see the three little ridges or hills where we'll plant the potatoes tomorrow, and where we succeeded in burning a few holes into the fabric. The wind was whipping it up so much that we decided to weigh it down with these tomato stakes.


And on a completely different note: here's the Kohlrabi, of previous posts' fame, hardening off in the barn before planting. We put the seedlings under grow lights and a blanket to try to keep them relatively warm in the cold barn. Pretty cute!